Saturday, September 23 : Saint John Chrysostom

If the seed dries up this is not due to the heat. Jesus did not say that it had dried up because of the heat but “for lack of roots”. If the Word is choked it is not due to the thorns but to those who allowed them to spring up unhindered. With a little bit of willpower you could stop them from growing, you could put your riches to good use. That is why our Savior does not talk about “the world” but about “the cares of the world”, not of “riches” but of “the lure of riches”. So don’t let us blame the things themselves but the perversion of our consciences… You see, it isn’t the gardener, it isn’t the seed but it is the earth where it falls that provides the answer – namely, the dispositions of our hearts. And here, too, God’s goodness towards us is very great in that, far from demanding an identical measure of virtue, he welcomes the firstcomers, does not turn away those who come second and makes room for the third… So first of all we have to listen attentively to the Word, then faithfully commit it to memory, then be courageous, then despise wealth and free ourselves from love of all worldly goods. And if Jesus puts attentiveness to the Word in first place and before every other condition it is because this is the essential one. “How believe without hearing?” (Rom 10,14). And we, too, unless we attend to what we are told, will not know what duties to carry out. Only after this comes courage and scorn for worldly goods. To profit by these lessons, let us strengthen ourselves by every means, be attentive to the Word, push our roots down deeply and throw off all worldly care.
Roman Catholic Ordinary Calendar – rosary,team